Ed Bouchette: Welcome back all. Fire away. ed

PhillyMarty: Ed: Since most seem to think the Gailey interview was a favor to Cowher, and the only other "ousiders" interviewed were minorities, do you think the outcome may have been different if Grimm were also a minority.

Ed Bouchette: No, I don't.

sanfranblackngold: Ed, how did you let Silver scoop you? why all of the confusion on Saturday?

Ed Bouchette: The confusion happened because the Steelers had not yet chosen their coach. Believe me, there were some national people mighty nervous on Sunday morning. They had not offered the job to Tomlin. Some people who picked the right man three days before the Steelers picked him feel real relieved the Steelers went and did it on Sunday afternoon.

sanfranblackngold: Any ideas what the next step for Russ Grimm is? Is he in Mobile networking for a new job?

Ed Bouchette: Yes, he'll have a job, perhaps coordinator and/or assistant head coach somewhere.

PhillyMarty: Ed: What gives the Steelers reason to think Arians qualifies to be OC? During his 3-yr term in Cleveland, even the year they lost the playoff game to the Steelers, their offense was ranked 21st. The other years it was bottom six. I know you were not consulted, but do you agree with this promotion?

Ed Bouchette: Yes. Arians is qualified and it gives them some continuity. He made chicken salad out of chicken droppings in Cleveland.

SkiRace217: Any news on where Grimm is heading? Any chance that Tomlin retains Whipple?

Ed Bouchette: Grimm is going to take a few days to consider his options, Arizona being one of them. I don't think you'll see Whipple retained here by the new coach.

sanfranblackngold: Ed, I have been hearing that Ben was "last guy in the locker room, and first guy out"...Tomlin signaled something that we have to stress fundamentals and become students of the game-he said that in context of discussing Ben?

Ed Bouchette: Yes, but he meant it in context with everyone.

mt: What do you think of your colleague Ron Cook's column about Tomlin? Do you think the rooney rule got him hired?

Ed Bouchette: I don't know if Rooney Rule got him hired, it may have got his foot in the door, which is the intention of the rule to begin with. So many times in the past, minority coaches were dismissed out of hand without consideration. If you look at what's going on in the NFL today, the rule not only has helped but helped produce some of the best coaches in the NFL.

buckeyeofsteel: What is your general initial impression of Mike Tomlin, and do you think that the team's goal of making it to Glendale in 2008 is realistic?

Ed Bouchette: Like everyone else who has known him or met him, Tomlin is an impressive man. He's energetic, bright, speaks well, knows his audience and has a sense of humor. Of course the Super Bowl is realistic for this team. They won it last February and were 15-1 the year before. Did you see where Tomlin called last season a "failure," the first time I've heard that from anyone inside the Steelers organization.

mdsteel: Which way do you think coach Tomlin will go with the 15th pick off. or def. or trade the pick?

Ed Bouchette: I have no idea. Let's not forget that Kevin Colbert remains the team's director of football operations.

mdsteel: Do you think the Cowboys will try and go after Cowher?

Ed Bouchette: I think Jerry Jones should place a phone call to him. I don't think Cowher wants to coach this year, no matter what Jones might offer. Next year's a different story. I also don't think Cowher wants to put up with a hands-on owner such as Jones or deal with T.O. Plus, Jones would have to ship some draft choices to Pittsburgh.

GjSteeler: Ed, what was the deal with the leak that Russ Grimm got offered the job?

Ed Bouchette: I don't know because I did not report that.

mt: Is Tomlin a better x's and o's guy than Cowher?Or at least is that how he is perceived to be?

Ed Bouchette: I don't know that one, either. Remember, Bill Cowher was a defensive coordinator for 3 years in KC before he came to Pittsburgh. He wasn't a bad X-O coach.

mt: What's your gut feel about Tomlin? Do you think he'll succeed?

Ed Bouchette: My gut feeling is good, but then it was good about Russ Grimm too.

buckeyeofsteel: With Bruce Arians as the new offensive coordinator, will the Steelers offense suffer or improve?

Ed Bouchette: Bruce is qualified, so I think the rest is on the players, particularly on Ben Roethlisberger to cut down on the interceptions.

Tman44: Ed, what was the rule used by the Rooneys 15 years ago when Cowher was hired?

Ed Bouchette: The hire a coach rule? I don't know what you're talking about, but I do know two minority candidates were interviewed during that process as well, long before it was required of them.

GjSteeler: Ed, why didn't any of the search committee say..why they chose one over the other?

Ed Bouchette: I think they said alot about why they hired Mike Tomlin yesterday. You can't expect them to sit there and give every little detail, especially if it would appear as if they were putting down the ones they did not hire.

tlg8tr: Is Whipple staying?

Ed Bouchette: I really don't think so.

PhillyBenny: Ed, it seems everyone but the local Pitt media knew who the head coach was going to be. Not a knock on you at all, but do you feel disrespected from the Rooney's?

Ed Bouchette: I explained that earlier. I can't speak for the rest of the Pittsburgh media, but I know the Post-Gazette did not announce who the head coach was because the Rooneys did not pick one until Sunday. You can believe that or not if you want, but some national guys jumped the gun earlier and, I know for a fact, they were nervous about it the next day.

mike_m: Ed; Do you think that Mike Tomlin will enact changes in the current structure of the offense? For now, all the focus has concerned the defense.

Ed Bouchette: There are always changes when a new coach is hired. But I would expect him to keep with the same general philosophy on offense with a heavy dose on the run.

bg: Is Mike Prisuta a friend of yours, and did you speak with him yesterday at the news conference?

Ed Bouchette: Yes, I consider Mike a friend and yes, we had a private chat yesterday.

Jeff: Hi Ed. How come you didn't become a sour columnist like Ron Cook or Bob Smizik?

Ed Bouchette: I like this job better.

4th_and_1: Will Tomlin dump veterans like Jeff Hartings in favor of younger players who may be more loyal to the new coach?

Ed Bouchette: I don't know if he'll be "dumping" veterans. Jeff Hartings may retire. There aren't a lot of veterans a new coach would want to "dump."

SkiRace217: Do you think that Whipple heads to Arizona to work for Whisenhunt?

Ed Bouchette: No. When Whis asked for permission to talk to some Steelers coaches, Whipple wasn't one of them.

mdsteel: If the Bears lost would Rivera have had another interview? I think the Steelers waited until after they knew the bears won before they called Tomlin, I am curious what time he got the phone call, he said he was watching the game.

Ed Bouchette: No. The Rooneys explained that yesterday, they had decided to pick a coach over the weekend.

tlg8tr: Ed, why are people saying that Polamalu would not be a good fit in a 4-3. He's fast, he can hit, and he's smart, that leaves only deep coverage as a potential weekness. Are his skills as a cover man in question?

Ed Bouchette: The cover 2, although misunderstood by many, generally uses two deep safeties to each cover half of the deep zone. The cornerbacks press a receiver, then "hand him off" to the safeties in the zone. I think you'll agree with me that Polamalu's virtues are not best suited to playing center field in a zone.

Samich_FL: Ed, Iron or Iron Light?

Ed Bouchette: Ugh.

Tinkerbell: Thanks for taking time to chat with us, Ed. I know your schedule lately has been crazy. What should we expect from Tomlin over the next few months?

Ed Bouchette: He has a lot of work to do. He must finish hiring his staff, evaluate players, sit down and talk to guys like me to get a feel for those who will cover him, go to Indy Combine in February, find a place to live, find schools for his kids, introduce himself to his players and watch plenty of film on them. I can go on, because there's so much more.

Bellowlugosi: Why is everyone making such a big deal over RACE for the hiring as well as the SuperBowl? I mean, these are men that have a great knowledge of the game and that is why they are hired or are coaching in the SuperBowl. Why is it such a big deal?

Ed Bouchette: It's a big deal because for so long those opportunities were not available to minorities. It's a big deal because the NFL actually has a rule that requires teams to interview minorities. It will be great, though, when it no longer is a big deal.

Tman44: Ed, I havent noticed much media support in Pittsburgh over this hiring, does Tomlin get any honeymoon?

Ed Bouchette: He'll get the kind of honeymoon and Pittsburgh coach would get: If he wins, he'll be the toast of the town; if he loses, they'll want to run him out of town.

tlg8tr: Do you think that the draft will reflect a slower changeover to 4-3 personnel?

Ed Bouchette: That will be interesting because there are two positions in particular that are different between the 3-4 and the 4-3 -- the outside linebackers and the ends. There's also a need for one more defensive tackle and the DTs in the 4-3 are different than NTs in the 3-4.

Russ_Grimm: With Troy P. coming into a contract year and the defense possibly switching philosophies do you think it makes sense to sign him to a big money contract?

Ed Bouchette: We don't know if they'll switch philosophies to the point where a great player like Troy Polamalu won't be used to what best suits his abilities.

herewego: Where does Cook get off insulting the Rooneys, Tomlin and the entire city with that article today?

Ed Bouchette: Well, he's a columnist and he writes his opinion, first of all. I don't know that he insulted any one, he wrote something that probably many people are thinking.

Russ_Grimm: Are charisma and personality enough to compensate for lack of playing and coaching experience?

Ed Bouchette: I don't think lack of playing experience necessarily hurts a coach, otherwise Bill Belichick wouldn't be the genius he is. The man has coached six years in the NFL and he coached in college before that. Did you see what the Jets did their first year under a young coach?

GjSteeler: Are you saying Casey Hampton can't play DT in the 4-3?

Ed Bouchette: Oh, he could play it all right. But you'd need someone else next to him, plus backups.

PhillyMarty: Are you surprised that neither Whis or Grimm got the job given their resumes and current connections to the organization?

Ed Bouchette: Yes, I'm a little surprised.

gcc62: Out of curiousity, I have always wondered how much the X and Os are really up to the head coach. It seems that Cowher made the final decisions but his coordinators did most of the planning - there was always talk of it being Earhardt's system, or Whiz's system. Is this typical or was Cowher just good at delegating?

Ed Bouchette: No, it's typical. But the coach can veto things, or add plays or whatnot.

mdsteel: Why not run 4-3 and 3-4 every other play and throw in a 5-2 to keep everyone on edge?

Ed Bouchette: And confuse your own defense as well?

tlg8tr: Should I bet the farm we draft a DT or a TRUE DE in the first round.

Ed Bouchette: What kind of farm?

Ed Bouchette: Thanks for all your questions. Keep it tuned here to see when I'll be back. We'll do one of these on occasion in the off-season. ed